Finding the Latest Books and More @ the Library

How do you find out about the latest and greatest books and other materials the Ridgefield Library has to offer?  Of course, you can browse the special displays of new acquisitions but many popular items will be out in circulation as soon as we receive them.

Our staff has developed several online tools to help you explore what’s new and to make it easy for you to get on the list for your favorites - even before we receive them!

You can subscribe to “BookLetters” newsletters that provide a round-up of bestsellers, new and upcoming releases, books discussed on radio and TV and more.  Sign up on the “Reader’s Resources” page on our website at www.ridgefieldlibrary.org to get these periodic updates sent directly to your inbox.

You can also look for the new feature in our “This Week @ the Library” e-newsletter, which  provides quick links to web listings of new additions to our collections in many popular areas, from mysteries to DVDs.  These pages, which are also accessible on our website, include cover art, summaries, reviews, author interviews and sometimes excerpts, along with handy links to our catalog so you can check availability and request the items that interest you. 

Library Offers Many Music Recordings

Looking for a place to get music CDs in Ridgefield?  The Library has a collection of over 2,000 recordings in a broad range of genres, and we’ve just reorganized our CDs to make finding music more user-friendly. 

The Library offers current top-sellers as well as enduring favorites by a wide range of artists in pop, rock, folk, country western and jazz.  Fans of our Ridgefield Folk series will find CDs by many of the artists who have appeared, and our comprehensive world music collection represents most regions and nations.  Our recordings of movies and Broadway musicals now live in a new browser that makes it easy to locate your favorite film or show tunes.  

The Library’s wide array of classical music CDs ranges from symphonies and chamber music to works for solo piano and strings.  Want to listen to an opera or ballet before going to a live performance or HD broadcast?   We have recordings of most classical works that are being performed in the greater metropolitan area.

Finally, can’t remember the name of the song or musical work that’s stuck in your head?  We’d love the challenge of identifying it and locating a recording for you.

Contributed by Adult Services Librarian Dorothy Pawlowski

Celebrate the End of Summer Reading at Piccolo Pizza

Summer Reading at the Library draws to a close on Saturday, August 6^th.  Make sure to get all your reading recorded so you can qualify for great prizes and raffles, made possible by the Friends of the Library and generous local merchants.  Volunteers and staff are standing by to help you log your titles, or do it at your convenience online from anywhere your travels take you.  Parents – if your children are participating, don’t forget it is easy for you to join in Adult Summer Reading as well.  Sign up today and make reading a family affair!

For the 2^nd year, we will be celebrating the end of Summer Reading with a special fundraising promotion, courtesy of Piccolo Pizza.  Pick up a coupon at the Library or print one from our website and present it when you order eat-in, take-out or delivery items at Piccolo all day on Wednesday, August 3^rd and Thursday, August 4^th (11 AM – 10 PM).  The generous folks at Piccolo will donate 50% of their profits on your purchases to support Summer Reading and other activities at the Library. What a wonderful way to celebrate reading, have a great family meal and support your Ridgefield Library!

Summer Is Cool @ the Library

It’s hot out there,   but cool in here!  Look to your Library to provide respite and recreation throughout the summer months – including air conditioning!

•  Take advantage of our free, secure wireless access for your laptop – anywhere in the building – or use one of our Public Access Computers to check your email or do research in comfort.
•  Take in a movie in our Hollister Film Series every other week (on Wednesdays during the summer to accommodate those also wishing to attend CHIRP concerts on Tuesdays).  Showings are at 1:30 and 7 PM.
• Drop in to storytime on Monday and Saturday mornings, Mother Goose on Tuesdays and Friday Flicks on Fridays.  Check our website for times and age restrictions, and keep those young kids from getting frazzled by the heat.
• Grab one of our special “beach books” – spare uncatalogued paperbacks you can borrow casually without worrying about fines or lost item charges.
•  Too hot to move, even to come to the Library?  Check out all the online resources, including downloadable ebooks and audiobooks,  that you can access from our website without even leaving poolside.

Therapy Dogs Help Children Improve their Reading Skills

The Ridgefield Library is not typically a place canines frequent, but in the summer we welcome a special group of pooches that help children practice reading.  For the past three summers Tyler, a gorgeous Shetland sheepdog, and his owner Paula Goldsmith came to the Library for special reading sessions that encouraged the development of good reading skills in a comfortable non- judgmental environment.

Tyler is a proud member of Therapy Dogs International (TDI), an organization that trains dogs who have outstanding temperaments and love to listen to children read.  Therapy dogs and their owners visit schools, hospitals, nursing homes and other public places.  Paula and Tyler offered their services to enhance our Summer Reading program and approx. 100 children were able to read to Tyler.  We salute and thank Paula and Tyler, who have “retired” from service at the Library.

This summer we welcome a new crew of trained therapy dogs from R.O.A.R (Ridgefield Operation for Animal Rescue). We are pleased that this new partnership will allow us to continue this valuable service to help children improve their reading.  Readers ages 5 and up must sign up in Children’s Services for an appointment with of our new four-legged friends during Summer Reading.

Contributed by Diane Antezzo, Children's Programmer

Summer Reading Goes Hi-Tech @ the Library

Have you tried our new online Summer Reading program?  As of 5 PM on 6/29, 716 children, 130 teens and 34 adults had registered and begun logging their reading to win prizes. So far, they have recorded and/or reviewed 3,895 books!  To join them, go to www.ridgefieldlibrary.org and click through to the Summer Reading page.

Here’s what is great about the new system:

•  You can register and log your reading anytime, from anywhere you have Internet access – at home, on vacation, even from a smartphone while on the go.
•  It saves lots of staff time compiling statistics and verifying prize levels reached. 
• You can easily browse reviews submitted by others and get recommendations for your own reading enjoyment.
• It saves reams of paper and lots of time spent keeping track of paper log sheets and entry forms.
• You can easily print out a list of your entries to bring to school in the fall.

Of course, we are always happy to help you at the Library if you prefer to use traditional in-person or on-paper reporting methods. And, as always, many thanks to the Friends of the Ridgefield Library for supporting Summer Reading, including our new online software.